This invention relates to magnetic tape cassette ejecting devices for tape recorders, and more particularly to a magnetic tape cassette ejecting device for digital audio tape recorders.
There are available a variety of magnetic tape recorders, and many of them use magnetic tape cassettes in which magnetic tapes are accommodated as recording media. A magnetic tape recording using such a magnetic tape cassette has a cassette loading device for loading a magnetic tape cassette in position for recording or reproducing signals, and a cassette ejecting device for removing the cassette therefrom.
A variety of cassette ejecting devices have been proposed in the art, and almost all of them are designed as follows: A cassette case holding a magnetic tape cassette is rotatably held, and is urged to turn to open its cover. The cassette case has a locking part, which is engaged with an ejecting button so that the cassette case is held at a cover closing position. The ejecting button is operated to disengage from the locking part, so that the cassette case is turned by the energizing force to open its cover. A typical example of the cassette ejecting device thus designed has been disclosed by Examined Japanese Utility Model Publication 32889/1979.
The above-described conventional cassette ejecting device suffers from a difficulty that, when it is required to remove the magnetic tape cassette from the cassette case set at the cover opening position, it is rather difficult to take out the cassette because the latter is accommodated inside the cassette case.
In order to overcome the difficulty, there has been proposed a magnetic tape cassette ejecting device which is so designed that the magnetic tape cassette is pushed in the cassette removal direction. However, the device is still disadvantageous in that, in order to build up an elastic force to remove the cassette in inserting it, it is necessary to insert the cassette with a relatively large force; that is, the device is low in operability.
In addition, there has been available a magnetic tape cassette ejecting device in which an electric motor is employed to load the cassette with relatively small force. However, it is also disadvantageous in that it is intricate in construction, high in manufacturing cost, and loading the cassette takes a relatively long time.